Apparatus and method for performing motion capture using a random pattern on capture surfaces

ABSTRACT

A method is described comprising: applying a random pattern to specified regions of an object; tracking the movement of the random pattern during a motion capture session; and generating motion data representing the movement of the object using the tracked movement of the random pattern.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of co-pending U.S. application Ser.No. 14/754,651, filed Jun. 29, 2015, which is a divisional of U.S.application Ser. No. 14/187,759, filed Feb. 24, 2014, entitled“Apparatus And Method For Performing Motion Capture Using A RandomPattern On Capture Surfaces” now U.S. Pat. No. 8,659,668, which is adivisional of U.S. application Ser. No. 11/255,854, filed Oct. 20, 2005,entitled, “Apparatus And Method for Performing Motion Capture Using ARandom Pattern On Capture Surfaces”, now U.S. Pat. No. 8,659,668, Issuedon Feb. 25, 2014, which claims the benefit of U.S. ProvisionalApplication No. 60/724,565 filed Oct. 7, 2005, entitled “Apparatus andMethod for Performing Motion Capture Using a Random Pattern On CaptureSurfaces”, all of which are herein incorporated by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the Invention

This invention relates generally to the field of motion capture. Moreparticularly, the invention relates to an improved apparatus and methodfor performing motion capture using a random pattern of paint applied toa portion of a performer's face, body, clothing, and/or props.

Description of the Related Art

“Motion capture” refers generally to the tracking and recording of humanand animal motion. Motion capture systems are used for a variety ofapplications including, for example, video games and computer-generatedmovies. In a typical motion capture session, the motion of a “performer”is captured and translated to a computer-generated character.

As illustrated in FIG. 1 in a traditional motion capture system, aplurality of motion tracking “markers” (e.g., markers 101, 102) areattached at various points on a performer's 100's body. The points aretypically selected based on the known limitations of human anatomy.Different types of motion capture markers are used for different motioncapture systems. For example, in a “magnetic” motion capture system, themotion markers attached to the performer are active coils which generatemeasurable disruptions x, y, z and yaw, pitch, roll in a magnetic field.

By contrast, in an optical motion capture system, such as thatillustrated in FIG. 1, the markers 101, 102 are passive spherescomprised of retroreflective material, i.e., a material which reflectslight back in the direction from which it came, ideally over a widerange of angles of incidence. A plurality of cameras 120, 121,122, eachwith a ring of LEDs 130, 131, 132 around its lens, are positioned tocapture the LED light reflected back from the retroreflective markers101, 102 and other markers on the performer. Ideally, the retroreflectedLED light is much brighter than any other light source in the room.Typically, a thresholding function is applied by the cameras 120,121,122 to reject all light below a specified level of brightness which,ideally, isolates the light reflected off of the reflective markers fromany other light in the room and the cameras 120, 121, 122 only capturethe light from the markers 101, 102 and other markers on the performer.

A motion tracking unit 150 coupled to the cameras is programmed with therelative position of each of the markers 101, 102 and/or the knownlimitations of the performer's body. Using this information and thevisual data provided from the cameras 120-122, the motion tracking unit150 generates artificial motion data representing the movement of theperformer during the motion capture session.

A graphics processing unit 152 renders an animated representation of theperformer on a computer display 160 (or similar display device) usingthe motion data. For example, the graphics processing unit 152 may applythe captured motion of the performer to different animated charactersand/or to include the animated characters in differentcomputer-generated scenes. In one implementation, the motion trackingunit 150 and the graphics processing unit 152 are programmable cardscoupled to the bus of a computer (e.g., such as the PCI and AGP busesfound in many personal computers). One well known company which producesmotion capture systems is Motion Analysis Corporation (see, e.g.,www.motionanalysis.com).

One problem which exists with current marker-based motion capturesystems is that when the markers move out of range of the cameras, themotion tracking unit 150 may lose track of the markers. For example, ifa performer lays down on the floor on his/her stomach (thereby coveringa number of markers), moves around on the floor and then stands back up,the motion tracking unit 150 may not be capable of re-identifying all ofthe markers.

Another problem which exists with current marker-based motion capturesystems is that resolution of the image capture is limited to theprecision of the pattern of markers. In addition, the time required toapply the markers on to a performer is long and tedious, as theapplication of the markers must be precise and when a large number ofmarkers are used, for example on a face, in practice, the markers arevery small (e.g. on the order of 1-2 mm in diameter). FIGS. 2a and 2billustrate the tediousness of the process of applying markers to aperformer. The positions 202 for the application of the markers 206 mustfirst be created with a makeup pencil 204 or other fine tip marker. Oncethe pattern has been created, the markers 206 are applied. Because themarkers 206 are only 1-2 mm in diameter, the markers 206 must be appliedto the positions 202 using tweezers (not shown) and an adhesive 208.

Another problem with current marker-based motion systems is thatapplication of the markers must be kept away from certain areas of theperformer, such as the eyes 210 and the lips 212 of a performer, becausethe markers may impede the free motion of these areas. In addition,secretions (e.g., tears, saliva) and extreme deformations of the skin(e.g., pursing the lips 212) may cause the adhesive 208 to beineffective in bonding the markers 206 on certain places of the skin.Additionally, during performances with current motion capture systems,markers may fall off or be smudged such that they change position on theperformer, thus requiring a halt in the performance capture session (anda waste of crew and equipment resources) to tediously reapply themarkers and often recalibrate the system.

Another current approach to accomplishing motion capture is to opticallyproject a pattern or sequence of patterns (typically a grid of lines orother patterns) onto the performer. One or more cameras is then used tocapture the resulting deformation of the patterns due to the contours ofthe performer, and then through subsequent processing a point cloudrepresentative of the surface of the performer is calculated.Eyetronics-3d of Redondo Beach, Calif. is one company that utilizes suchan approach for motion capture.

Although projected-pattern motion capture is quite useful forhigh-resolution surface capture, it suffers from a number of significantlimitations in a motion capture production environment. For one, theprojected pattern typically is limited to a fairly small area. If theperformer moves out of the area of the projection, no capture ispossible. Also, the projection is only in focus within a given depth offield, so if the performer moves too close or too far from the projectedpattern, the pattern will be blurry and resolution will be lost.Further, if an object obstructs the projection (e.g. if the performerraises an arm and obstructs the projection from reaching the performer'sface), then the obstruction region cannot be captured. And finally, asthe captured surface deforms through successive frames (e.g. if theperformer smiles and the cheek compresses), the motion capture system isnot able to track points on the captured surface to see where they movedfrom frame to frame. It is only able to capture what the new geometry ofthe surface is after the deformation. Markers can be placed on thesurface and can be tracked as the surface deforms, but the tracking willbe of no higher resolution than that of the markers. For example, such asystem is described in the paper “Spacetime Faces: High ResolutionCapture for Modeling and Animation”, by Li Zhang, et. al., of Universityof Washington.

As computer-generated animations becomes more realistic, cloth animationis used increasingly. Cloth simulation is quite complex because so manyphysical factors impact the simulation. This results in typically verylong computation time for cloth simulation and many successiveiterations of the simulation until the cloth achieves the look desiredfor the animation.

There have been a number of prior art efforts to capture cloth (andsimilar deformable and foldable surfaces) using motion capturetechniques. For example, in the paper “Direct Pattern Tracking OnFlexible Geometry” by Igor Guskow of University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.et. al, an approach is proposed where a regular grid is drawn on clothand captured. More sophisticated approaches are described in otherpapers by Igor Guskow, et. al., such as “Multi-scale Features forApproximate Alignment of Point-based Surfaces”, “Extracting AnimatedMeshes with Adaptive Motion Estimation”, and “Non-Replicating Indexingfor Out-of-Core Processing of Semi-Regular Triangular Surface Meshes”.But none of these approaches are suitable for a motion captureproduction environment. Issues include production inefficiencies such ascomplex preparation of a specific geometric pattern on the cloth andcapture quality limitations depending on lighting or other environmentalissues.

Accordingly, what is needed is an improved apparatus and method fortracking and capturing deformable and foldable surfaces in an efficientproduction environment.

SUMMARY

A method according to one embodiment of the invention is describedcomprising: applying a random pattern to specified regions of aperformer's face and/or body and/or other deformable surface; trackingthe movement of the random pattern during a motion capture session; andgenerating motion data representing the movement of the performer's faceusing the tracked movement of the random pattern.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The patent or application file contains at least one drawing executed incolor. Copies of this patent or patent publication with color drawing(s)will be provided by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office upon requestand payment of the necessary fee.

A better understanding of the present invention can be obtained from thefollowing detailed description in conjunction with the drawings, inwhich:

FIG. 1 illustrates a prior art motion tracking system for tracking themotion of a performer using retroreflective markers and cameras.

FIG. 2a illustrates a prior art method of drawing a pattern with amakeup pencil for positioning the reflective markers for motion capture.

FIG. 2b illustrates a prior art method of applying the markers afterdrawing the pattern as in FIG. 2 a.

FIG. 3 illustrates a prior art curve pattern, flattened into a 2D image,that replaces the markers of FIG. 1 for use with another motion trackingsystem.

FIG. 4 illustrates a face with the prior art curve pattern of FIG. 3applied.

FIG. 5 illustrates a random pattern applied to all parts of aperformer's face, body, and props.

FIG. 6 illustrates one embodiment of the invention which employs theperformer with the random pattern in FIG. 5 to track movement and/orfacial expression with synchronized light panels and camera shutters.

FIG. 7 is a timing diagram illustrating the synchronization between thelight panels and the shutters according to one embodiment of theinvention.

FIGS. 8a and 8b are frames captured at the same time, with externalvisible light present, of an elevated view and a frontal view,respectively, of a performer with a random pattern of phosphorescentpaint applied to the face.

FIGS. 9a and 9b are frames captured at the same time, without externalvisible light present, from the same perspectives as FIGS. 8a and 8b ,respectively, of the performer with the random pattern of paint appliedto the face.

FIG. 10 is a schematic representation of an exemplary LED array and theconnectors for the synchronization signals.

FIG. 11 is a timing diagram illustrating the synchronization between thelight panels and the camera shutters in an embodiment for capturing bothlit frames and glow frames.

FIG. 12 is a timing diagram illustrating the synchronization between thelight panels and the camera shutters in another embodiment for capturingboth lit frames and glow frames.

FIG. 13 illustrates one embodiment of a system for capturing both litframes and glow frames.

FIG. 14 illustrates a timing diagram associated with the system shown inFIG. 13.

FIG. 15 illustrates the method of correlating captured frames from twocameras of the motion capture system to create a 3D surface.

FIGS. 16a and 16b are the frame captures of FIGS. 9a and 9b mapped to acommon coordinate system.

FIG. 17 is a frame with the frame captures of FIGS. 16a and 16boverlapping each other.

FIG. 18 illustrates an example of the correlation graph in order todetermine the depth of a point in FIG. 17.

FIG. 19 is an example of a resulting 3D texture map from the correlationmethod of FIG. 15 and rendering.

FIGS. 20a and 20b are frames captured; at two separate points in time,from the same camera position, and with external visible light present;of a cloth with a random pattern of phosphorescent paint applied to bothsides.

FIGS. 21a and 21b are frame captures, without external visible lightpresent, corresponding to FIGS. 20a and 20b , respectively, of the clothwith the random pattern of paint applied to both sides.

FIG. 22 is a frame with the frame captures of FIGS. 21a and 21boverlapping each other.

FIG. 23 illustrates one embodiment of the camera positioning for themotion capture system of FIG. 6 or 13.

FIG. 24 illustrates the performer in FIG. 23 wearing a crown of markers.

FIG. 25 illustrates, from FIG. 23, the inner ring of cameras' fields ofview of the performer.

FIGS. 26a and 26b are frames captured at successive moments in time,without external visible light present and each from the sameperspective of a performer with the random pattern of paint applied tothe face.

FIG. 27 is a frame with the frame captures of FIGS. 26a and 26boverlapping each other.

FIG. 28 illustrates the imaginary camera positioning described in FIG.15.

FIG. 29 illustrates the imaginary camera at the same perspective as anexisting camera.

FIG. 30 illustrates correlation between frames captured by three cameras

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Described below is an improved apparatus and method for performingmotion capture using a random pattern of paint applied to portions of aperformer's face and/or body. In the following description, for thepurposes of explanation, numerous specific details are set forth inorder to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention. Itwill be apparent, however, to one skilled in the art that the presentinvention may be practiced without some of these specific details. Inother instances, well-known structures and devices are shown in blockdiagram form to avoid obscuring the underlying principles of theinvention.

The assignee of the present application previously developed a systemfor performing color-coded motion capture and a system for performingmotion capture using a series of reflective curves 300, illustratedgenerally in FIG. 3 and shown painted on the face of a performer 400 inFIG. 4. These systems are described in the co-pending applicationsentitled “Apparatus and Method for Capturing the Motion and/orExpression of a Performer,” Ser. No. 10/942,609, and Ser. No.10/942,413, Filed Sep. 15, 2004. These applications are assigned to theassignee of the present application and are incorporated herein byreference.

The assignee of the present application also previously developed asystem for performing motion capture using shutter synchronization andphosphorescent paint. This system is described in the co-pendingapplication entitled “Apparatus and Method for Performing Motion CaptureUsing Shutter Synchronization,” Ser. No. 11/077,628, Filed Mar. 10, 2005(hereinafter “Shutter Synchronization” application). Briefly, in theShutter Synchronization application, the efficiency of the motioncapture system is improved by using phosphorescent paint and byprecisely controlling synchronization between the motion capturecameras' shutters and the illumination of the painted curves. Thisapplication is assigned to the assignee of the present application andis incorporated herein by reference.

Unlike any prior motion capture systems, in one embodiment of thepresent invention, illustrated generally in FIG. 5, a random pattern ofphosphorescent paint is applied to the performer's face 502, body orclothing 504 and/or props 506 (e.g., a sword). The amount of paintapplied to the performer may vary, i.e., with certain areas havingrelatively more or less paint in relation to other areas. No paint maybe used on some areas whereas other areas may be saturated with paint.In another embodiment, multiple colors of phosphorescent paint may beapplied to create the random pattern on the performer. In addition, inone embodiment, the random pattern may be used concurrently withdifferent structured patterns, such as the curve pattern described inco-pending application Ser. Nos. 10/942,609 and 10/942,413 or the markersystem of FIG. 1.

In one embodiment, the phosphorescent paint applied to the performer'sface is Fantasy F/XT Tube Makeup; Product #: FFX; Color Designation: GL;manufactured by Mehron Inc. of 100 Red Schoolhouse Rd. Chestnut Ridge,N.Y. 10977. In another embodiment, paint viewable in visible light isused to apply the random pattern and visible light is used whencapturing images. However, the underlying principles of the inventionare not limited to any particular type of paint. In another embodiment,if a liquid surface is to be captured, particles that float in theliquid can be distributed across the surface of the liquid. Suchparticles could be phosphorescent particles, retroreflective spheres, orother materials which are visible with high contrast compared to thelight emission of the liquid when it is captured.

As mentioned briefly above, in one embodiment, the efficiency of themotion capture system is improved by using phosphorescent paint and/orby precisely controlling synchronization between the cameras' shuttersand the illumination of the random pattern. Specifically, FIG. 6illustrates one embodiment in which the random pattern is painted on theperformer's face 602 using phosphorescent paint and light panels 608-609(e.g., LED arrays) are precisely synchronized with the opening andclosing of the shutters of the motion capture cameras 604. The room inwhich the capture is performed is sealed from light so that it iscompletely, or nearly completely dark, when the light panels 608-609 areoff. The synchronization between the light panels 608-609 and cameras604 is controlled via synchronization signals 622 and 621, respectively.As indicated in FIG. 6, in one embodiment, the synchronization signalsare provided from a peripheral component interface (“PCI”) card 623coupled to the PCI bus of a personal computer 620. An exemplary PCI cardis a PCI-6601 manufactured by National Instruments of Austin, Tex.However, the underlying principles of the invention are not limited toany particular mechanism for generating the synchronization signals.

The synchronization between the light sources and the cameras employedin one embodiment of the invention is illustrated graphically in FIG. 7.In this embodiment, the two synchronization signals 621, 622 are thesame. In one embodiment, the synchronization signals cycle between 0 to5 Volts. In response to the synchronization signals 621, 622, theshutters of the cameras are periodically opened and closed and the lightpanels are periodically turned off and on, respectively. For example, onthe rising edge 712 of the synchronization signals, the camera shuttersare closed and the light panels are illuminated. The shutters remainclosed and the light panels remain illuminated for a period of time 713.Then, on the falling edge of the synchronization signals 714, theshutters are opened and the light panels are turned off. The shuttersand light panels are left in this state for another period of time 715.The process then repeats on the rising edge 717 of the synchronizationsignals.

As a result, during the first period of time 713, no image is capturedby the cameras, and the random pattern of phosphorescent paint isilluminated with light from the light panels 608-609. During the secondperiod of time 715, the light is turned off and the cameras capture animage of the glowing phosphorescent paint on the performer. Because thelight panels are off during the second period of time 715, the contrastbetween the phosphorescent paint and the rest of the room (including theunpainted regions of the performer's body) is extremely high (i.e., therest of the room is pitch black), thereby improving the ability of thesystem to differentiate the various patterns painted on the performer'sface from anything else in the cameras' 604 fields of view. In addition,because the light panels are on half of the time, the performer will beable to see around the room during the performance. The frequency 716 ofthe synchronization signals may be set at such a high rate that theperformer will not even notice that the light panels are being turned onand off. For example, at a flashing rate of 75 Hz or above, most humansare unable to perceive that a light is flashing and the light appears tobe continuously illuminated. In psychophysical parlance, when a highfrequency flashing light is perceived by humans to be continuouslyilluminated, it is said that “fusion” has been achieved. In oneembodiment, the light panels are cycled at 120 Hz; in anotherembodiment, the light panels are cycled at 240 Hz, both frequencies farabove the fusion threshold of any human. However, the underlyingprinciples of the invention are not limited to any particular frequency.

FIGS. 8a and 8b are exemplary pictures of the performer 602 during thefirst time period 713 (i.e., when the light panels are illuminated) fromdifferent reference angles and FIGS. 9a and 9b show the illuminatedrandom pattern captured by the cameras 604 during the second time period715 (i.e., when the light panels are turned off). During the first timeperiod, the random pattern of phosphorescent paint (the paint as appliedin FIGS. 8a and 8b is mostly transparent in visible light, but where therandom pattern is particularly dense, it can be seen in visible light assmall spots of white such as 802 in FIG. 8a ) is charged by the lightfrom the light panels and, as illustrated in FIGS. 9a and 9b , when thelight panels are turned off, the only light captured by the cameras isthe light emanating from the charged phosphorescent paint (and theparticularly dense spot 802 can be seen in FIG. 9a as spot 902). Thus,the phosphorescent paint is constantly recharged by the strobing of thelight panels, and therefore retains its glow throughout the motioncapture session. In addition, because it retains its glow for a periodof time, if a performer happens to move so that for a few frames some ofthe random pattern of phosphorescent paint is in shadow and notilluminated by the light panels, even though the phosphorescent paint isnot getting fully charged for those frames, the paint will still retainits glow from previous frame times (i.e., when the paint was not inshadow).

Note also that the random paint pattern varies both spatially (i.e.paint dot placements) and in amplitude (i.e., paint dot density, sincedenser (thicker) dots generally phosphoresce more light) resulting in aframe capture by cameras 604 during the glow interval 715 that ismodulated randomly in horizontal and vertical spatial dimensions as wellas in brightness.

As mentioned above, in one embodiment, the light panels 608, 609 are LEDarrays. A schematic of an exemplary LED array 1001 and associatedconnection circuitry is illustrated in FIG. 10. The synchronizationsignals are applied to the LED array 1001 via connector J2-1 illustratedto the left in FIG. 10. In one embodiment, the connectors are RJ-45connectors. The synchronization signal is initially inverted by inverterIC2B and the inverted signal is applied to the base of transistor Q2,causing transistor Q2 to turn on and off in response to the invertedsignal. This causes current to flow through resistor R3, thereby causingtransistor Q1 to turn on and off. This, in turn, causes the LEDs withinthe LED array 501 to turn on and off. In one embodiment, the invertedsignal from IC2B is applied to three additional LED arrays as indicatedin FIG. 10. A plurality of additional connectors J1-1, J1-2, J1-3, andJ1-4 are provided for additional light panels (i.e., the light panelsmay be daisy-chained together via these connectors) using invertersIC2C, IC2D, IC2E and IC2F for buffering. If daisy-chaining withoutbuffering is desired (e.g. due to critical timing requirements thatwould be hampered by the IC2 propagation delays), then connector J2-2can be used. The voltage regulator IC1 used for the LED array (shown atthe top of FIG. 10) takes a 12V input and produces a 5V regulated outputused by IC2. In one embodiment, transistors Q1 is a MOSFET transistor.However, the underlying principles are not limited to any particulartype of circuitry.

In one embodiment of the invention, the cameras are configured tocapture pictures of the performer's face (e.g., FIGS. 8a and 8b ) inaddition to capturing the random pattern (e.g., FIGS. 9a and 9b ). Thepictures of the performer's face may then be used, for example, byanimators as a texture map for correlating regions of the random patternand rendering a more accurate representation of the performer. Thephosphorescent paint as applied in FIGS. 8a and 8b is largelytransparent in visible light, allowing for an almost unaltered captureof the underlying image of the performer's face. Prior art motioncapture systems have obscured much of the object to be captured byutilizing opaque marking materials such as retroreflective markers orhigh-contrast paint, or by utilizing patterns projected onto the face.All of these prior art techniques have made it difficult to capture alargely unaltered visible light image of the object being captured.Further, prior art optical motion capture techniques have relied uponspecific visible light lighting conditions. For example, retroreflectivemarkers rely upon a light source around the camera lens, paint patterncapture techniques rely upon reasonably uniform lighting of the face(e.g. shadows and highlights are avoided) and projected patterntechniques rely upon projected light. In one embodiment of theinvention, the motion is only captured during the glow interval 715.

During the visible light interval 713, virtually any lightingarrangement is possible so long as the phosphorescent paint isadequately charged (i.e., such that the pattern is within the lightsensitivity capability of cameras 604) before it dims. This givesenormous creative control to a director who wishes to achieve dramaticeffects with the lighting of the performers when their visible lightimages are captured. Such creative control of lighting is an integralpart of the art of filmmaking. Thus, not only does the present inventionallow for largely unobstructed visible light capture of the performers,but it allows for creative control of the lighting during such visiblelight image capture.

The signal timing illustrated in FIG. 11 represents an embodiment inwhich an asymmetric duty cycle is used for the synchronization signalfor the cameras (in contrast to the 50% duty cycle shown in FIG. 7). Inthis embodiment, synchronization signal 2 remains the same as in FIG. 7.The rising edge 1122 of synchronization signal 2 illuminates the lightpanels; the panels remain on for a first time period 1123, turn off inresponse to the falling edge 1124 of synchronization signal 2, andremain off for a second time period 1125.

By contrast, synchronization signal 1, which is used to control theshutters, has an asymmetric duty cycle. In response to the rising edge1112 of synchronization signal 1, the shutters are closed. The shuttersremain closed for a first period of time 1113 and are then opened inresponse to the falling edge 1114 of synchronization signal 1. Theshutters remain open for a second period of time 1115 and are againclosed in response to the rising edge of synchronization signal 1. Thesignals are synchronized so that the rising edge of synchronizationsignal 1 always coincides with both the rising and the falling edges ofsynchronization signal 2. As a result, the cameras capture one lit frameduring time period 1115 (i.e., when the shutters are open the lightpanels are illuminated) and capture one “glow frame” during time period1116 (i.e., when the shutters are open and the light panels are off).

In one embodiment, the data processing system 610 shown in FIG. 6separates the lit frames from the glow frames to generate two separatestreams of image data, one containing the images of the performer's faceand the other containing phosphorescent random pattern data. The glowframes may then be used to generate the 3D point cloud that specifiessurface 607 (shown enlarged in FIG. 19) of the performer's face and thelit frames may be used, for example, as a reference for animators. Suchreference could be used, for example, to better synchronize a texturemap of the face, or if the resulting animated face is different from theperformer's face (e.g. if it is a caricature), such reference could beused to help the animator know what expression the performer isintending during that frame of the performance. and/or to assist ingenerating the texture map derived from visible light capture 602 (shownenlarged in FIGS. 8a and 8b ) of the performer's face. The two separatevideo sequences may be synchronized and viewed next to one another on acomputer or other type of image editing device.

Given the significant difference in overall illumination between the litframes and the glow frames, some cameras may become overdriven duringthe lit frames if their light sensitivity is turned up very high toaccommodate glow frames. Accordingly, in one embodiment of theinvention, the sensitivity of the cameras is cycled between lit framesand glow frames. That is, the sensitivity is set to a relatively highlevel for the glow frames and is then changed to a relatively low levelfor the lit frames.

Alternatively, if the sensitivity of the cameras 604 cannot be changedon a frame-by-frame basis, one embodiment of the invention changes theamount of time that the shutters are open between the lit frames and theglow frames. FIG. 12 illustrates the timing of one such embodiment inwhich synchronization signal 1 is adjusted to ensure that the cameraswill not be overdriven by the lit frames. Specifically, in thisembodiment, during the period of time that synchronization signal 2 iscausing the light panels to be illuminated, synchronization signal 1causes the shutter to be closed for a relatively longer period of timethan when synchronization signal 2 is not illuminating the light panels.In FIG. 12, for example, synchronization signal 1 is high during timeperiod 1253, thereby closing the shutter, and is low during period 1255,thereby opening the shutter. By contrast, during the glow frame,synchronization signal 1 is high for a relatively short period of time1213 and is low for a relatively longer period of time 1215.

In one embodiment, illustrated in FIG. 13, both color and grayscalecameras are used and are synchronized using different synchronizationsignals. Specifically, in this embodiment, color cameras 1314-1315 areused to capture the lit frames and grayscale cameras 1304-1305 are usedto capture the phosphorescent random pattern painted on the performer'sface. One of the benefits of this configuration is that grayscalecameras typically have a relatively higher resolution and higher lightsensitivity than comparable sensor resolution color cameras, and cantherefore capture the phosphorescent pattern more precisely. Bycontrast, color cameras are better suited to capturing the color andtexture of the performer's face.

As illustrated in FIG. 14, in one embodiment, different synchronizationsignals, 1A and 1B are used to control the grayscale and color cameras,respectively. In FIG. 14, synchronization signals 1A and 1B are 180degrees out of phase. As a result, the falling edge 1414 ofsynchronization signal 1B occurs at the same time as the rising edge1424 of synchronization signal 1A, thereby opening the shutters for thecolor cameras 1314, 1315 and closing the shutters for the grayscalecameras 1304, 1305. Similarly, the rising edge 1412 of synchronizationsignal 1B occurs at the same time as the falling edge 1422 ofsynchronization signal 1A, thereby closing the shutters for the colorcameras 1314, 1315 and opening the shutters for the grayscale cameras1304, 1305. The synchronization signal 2 for the light panels is notillustrated in FIG. 14 but, in one embodiment, is the same as it is inFIG. 7, turning the light panels on when the color camera shutters areopened and turning the light panels off when the grayscale camerashutters are opened.

When the embodiments of the present invention described herein areimplemented in the real world, the synchronization signals (e.g., 621and 622 of FIG. 6) may require slight delays between respective edges toaccommodate delays in the cameras and LED arrays. For example, on somevideo cameras, there is a slight delay after rising edge 712 of FIG. 7before the camera shutter closes. This can be easily accommodated bydelaying signal 622 relative to signal 621. Such delays are typically onthe order of less than a millisecond. As such, when the system isstarted, the timing signals may initially need to be preciselycalibrated by observing whether the video cameras 604 are capturingcompletely black frames and adjusting the timing signals 621 and 622prior to the actual performance.

The random pattern of phosphorescent paint may be applied to theperformer through a variety of techniques. In one embodiment, paint isapplied to a sponge roller and the sponge roller is rolled across thespecified portion of the performer. FIGS. 8a-9b illustrate a patternapplied by this technique. Other exemplary techniques comprise (i)spraying the paint with an airbrush, (ii) applying paint through astencil, or (iii) flicking a wire brush containing paint such that thedroplets of paint are splattered onto the surface to be captured. Thedesired result is any random pattern, ideally with a 1/n randomdistribution, but high-quality can be achieved with patterns which arefar less than ideal. It should be noted that the above paint applicationtechniques are not exhaustive but are merely several embodiments of thepresent invention.

During the application of paint, parts of the performer that are notintended to be touched by the paint may be covered. Parts of theperformer that are typically screened from the paint application are theinside of the mouth and the eyeballs. These parts of the performer mayhave a random pattern applied to them through alternate techniques. Inone exemplary technique, a random pattern of phosphorescent paint isapplied to a contact lens, which is then placed over the performer'seyeball. In another exemplary technique, tooth caps embedded with arandom pattern of phosphorescent pigments are placed over the teeth ofthe performer. In one embodiment, frames are captured during litintervals 1115 and glow intervals 1116, and the performer's irisesand/or pupils (which are smooth and geometric) are tracked during litinterval 1115 using visible light, while other parts of the performer'sbody are captured from phosphorescent paint patterns during glowintervals 1116,

In one embodiment of the present invention, live performers and/or setsare captured at the same time as motion capture performers, who are tobe generated and rendered in the future, by the motion capture systemillustrated in FIG. 13. The set is in a room illuminated by thesynchronized LED lights 606, 609 of the motion capture system. Thelive-action performers and sets are captured by color cameras 1314-1315during the frame intervals when the lights are on, and themotion-captured performers are captured by the grayscale cameras1304-1305 during the frame intervals when the lights are off.

To compute the 3D surface 607 of FIGS. 6 and 13, images of theperformer/paint are captured within the field of view of at least twocameras. Correlation of the motion capture data from the at least twocameras is performed in order to create a 3D surface of regions of theperformer. The correlated regions of the captured data from all of thecameras are then correlated to create a final 3D surface 607.

In one embodiment of the present invention, a correlation may beperformed by Data Processing system 610 (which may incorporate one ormore computing systems 605 per camera 604 and/or may incorporate one ormore computing systems 606 to process the aggregated camera capturedata) at a low resolution for each pair of frames from two cameras withoverlapping fields of view to determine regions of the pair of framesthat highly correlate to each other. Then, another correlation of theregions determined to have high correlation at low resolution isperformed at a higher resolution in order to construct a 3D surface forthe two frames. Correlation may also be performed on at least twosuccessive time frame captures from the same view of reference in orderto determine and track movement and/or expressions of the performer.

FIG. 15 is a flowchart illustrating one specific embodiment of a methodfor correlating two frame captures from two different perspectives(e.g., the captures of FIGS. 9A and 9B). Before discussing the flowchartof FIG. 15, certain concepts must be introduced. Referring to FIG. 28,Camera 2801 captures frame PA in a stream of frames via sensor 2821.Camera 2802 captures frame PB via sensor 2822 at the same time frame PAis captured. Through the correlation technique described in FIG. 15, theresulting correlated frame from frame PA and frame PB will be from theperspective of an imaginary or “virtual” camera, visualized as imaginarycamera 2803 in FIG. 28.

The following variables will be used in discussing FIG. 15.

r: Variable r is the sensor resolution divisor for downsampling. Forexample, if a 640×480 pixel resolution frame is downsampled to 160×120pixels, then r equals 4 (640/160 and 480/120 equal 4).

r_(max): Variable r_(max) is the maximum sensor resolution divisor r canequal. Thus, the largest downsampling that can occur will use rmax.

SA: SA is the downsample of frame PA of factor of r. Downsampling can beperformed using various filters such as a bilinear filter, a bicubicfilter, or other filters and/or techniques known in the art. Thus, inthe example in the definition of r, SA is 160×120 pixels in size, wherePA was downsampled from 640×480 with a value of r equals 4 to a size of(640/4)×(480/4).

SB: SB is the downsample of PB as through the same process described inthe definition of SA. As will be seen in FIG. 15, correlations of framesPA and PB are first performed at lower resolutions (e.g., SA and SB) andthen performed at gradually higher resolutions in order to preventregions of frames PA and PB from falsely having high correlations withone another. For example, in a particular frame, a spot on a performer'schin may be falsely be identified as having a high correlation with aspot on the ear.

d_(min): The distance d_(min), illustrated in FIG. 28, is the distancebetween the imaginary camera's sensor 2823 (the visualization of theframe buffer) and the plane perpendicular to line 2813 of a capturepoint of the object 2820 closest to the imaginary sensor 2823. Thus, inthe example of FIG. 28, the closest point is the tip of the nose ofperformer 2820. The plane of the point is visualized as plane 2827. Itwill be understood by one in the art through discussion of FIG. 15 thatd_(min) can be set to a value less than the value described above. Inother exemplary embodiments, d_(min) can be user defined or set to thebeginning of the field of focal depth for camera 2801 and/or 2802.

d_(max): The distance d_(max) is the distance between the imaginarycamera's sensor 2823 (the visualization of the frame buffer) and theplane perpendicular to line 2813 of a capture point of the object 2820farthest away from the imaginary sensor 2823. Thus, in the example ofFIG. 28, the farthest point is the back of the head of performer 2820.The plane of the point is defined in the same way as for dmin. It willbe understood by one in the art through discussion of FIG. 15 thatd_(max) can be set to a value greater than the value described above, asshown plane 2828 in FIG. 28. In other exemplary embodiments, d_(max) canbe user defined or set to the end of the field of focal depth for camera2801 and/or 2802. In yet other exemplary embodiments d_(max) can be userdefined or set to further depth of the captured object in the fields ofview of cameras 2801 and 2802.

d: The distance d is the distance between the imaginary camera's sensor2823 and the imaginary plane of capture 2824. During the process of FIG.15, frames PA and PB are correlated as if captured from the same pointof reference. Hence, the frame stored in the frame buffer in correlatingPA and PB is like a frame being captured via the imaginary sensor 2823from the imaginary capture plane 2824. Thus, during discussion of FIG.15, frames SA and SB will be reference converted using a perspectivetransform, or “warped”, as if they were projected on imaginary plane2824. Distance d will change between d_(min) and d_(max). Therefore,frames SA and SB will be warped multiple times as if projected on themoving imaginary plane 2824.

Δd: Δd is the increment that distance d changes between frames. Thus, itcan be visualized that the imaginary plane 2824 moves Δd distance fromd_(min) to d_(max) where at each increment, the correlation of PA and PBis performed (as described in greater detail below). The user can choosea larger or smaller Δd, depending on the precision of reconstructionresolution in the z dimension that is desired.

VA: VA is the reference conversion of SA (“Virtual A”). In other words,VA is the resulting matrix (i.e., 2 dimensional frame buffer) of warpingSA to the reference of the imaginary plane 2824. Matrix VA can bevisualized as the frame SA (2825) captured via imaginary sensor 2823,but of course limited to what is in view of camera 2801. For example, ifthe underside of the nose of head 2820 is obstructed from camera 2801'sview then VA will not contain image information from the underside ofthe nose.

VB: VB is the reference conversion of SB (“Virtual B”). In other words,VB is the resulting matrix (i.e., 2 dimensional frame buffer) of warpingSB to the reference of the imaginary plane 2824. Matrix VB can bevisualized as the frame SB (2826) captured via imaginary sensor 2823. VAand VB are two matrices of perspective converted matrices SA and SB thatwill be correlated against each other in the process illustrated in FIG.15.

Z[m,n]: Matrix Z is originally of size m×n. The size of Z is originallyequal to the size of capture frames PA and PB. Because of correlation atdifferent resolutions, though, Z will be downsampled and upsampled.Thus, each element of Z is notated as z(j,k), where j is between 1 andm/r and k is between 1 and n/r. After the process illustrated in FIG.15, when correlation is finished performing at the highest resolution(when r=1), z(j,k)+d_(min) is the measure of depth of pixel j,k in theframe being correlated. Thus, pixel j,k of the resulting frame can bevisualized as being z(j,k)+d_(min) distance away from the imaginarycamera 2803. Hence, once the correlation process of FIG. 15 is complete,the Z matrix can be used to render a 3D image of the object 2820.

Z_(est)[m,n]: Matrix Z_(est) (an estimate of Z) is a matrix originallyof size m×n. The existence and use of Z_(est) allows for themanipulation of z(j,k) values without changing the values stored in Z.Z_(est) will be the same size as Z through the downsampling andupsampling in the process described in FIG. 15.

roa: roa stands for Range of Acceptance and is the range of distancesz(j,k) is allowed to deviate at a given resolution stage of the processillustrated in FIG. 15. For example, object 2820 is known to be withindistance d_(min) and d_(max) of imaginary camera 2803. Therefore,initial roa could be set to d_(max)−d_(min), as in FIG. 15, because noz(j,k) can be larger than this value. roa is refined each time a higherresolution pair of frames are beginning to be correlated, as will beseen in FIG. 15.

C[(m/r),(n/r)]: Matrix C is a matrix of the correlation values for apixel-wise, normalized cross-correlation between VA and VB at a specificd. The pixel-wise, normalized cross-correlation is well known in theart. An exemplary illustration and discussion of one pixel-wise,normalized cross-correlation is “Cross Correlation”, written by PaulBourke, copyright 1996(http://astronomy.swin.edu.au/˜pbourke/other/correlate/). In oneembodiment of the present invention, the values are normalized to therange on −1 to 1. Since correlation will be performed at varyingresolutions, the size of the matrix will depend on the amount ofdownsampling of the original frames (e.g., PA and PB). For example, ifPA and PB are downsampled to 80×60, C will be of size 80×60. Eachelement of C is notated as c(s,t) where s is between 1 and m/r and t isbetween 1 and n/r.

C_(max)[(m/r),(n/r)]: Matrix C_(max) is a matrix wherein c_(max)(s,t) isthe maximum value of c(s,t) when comparing all c(s,t) values for aspecific s and t over all d's (e.g., d_(min), d_(min)+Δd, d_(min)+2Δd, .. . , d_(max)). Hence, C_(max) contains the largest correlation valuecomputed for each pair of pixels va(s,t) and vb(s,t) of matrices VA andVB. The d at which the largest correlation value is determined for pixels,t will be stored in z(s,t) as the optimal d for the pair of pixels.When r is 1, the d's stored will create the wanted final Z matrix.

Beginning discussion of FIG. 15, step 1502 is entered wherein d, r, ROA,Z, and Z_(est) are initialized. Their initial values are set to thefollowing:

r = r_(max) d = d_(min) roa = d_(max) − d_(min)$Z = \frac{d_{\max} + d_{\min}}{2}$$Z_{est} = \frac{d_{\max} + d_{\min}}{2}$

In one embodiment, r_(max) is defined by the user, but it may bedetermined in a variety of ways including, but not limited to, setting astatic variable for all correlations or depending the variable ond_(min) and/or d_(max). It will be understood by one in the art throughmatrix algebra that Z=a means; for all j,k; z(j,k) equal a. Suchnotation will be used throughout the discussion of FIG. 15.

Step 1504 is then entered, where the frames PA and PB are downsampled tothe size m/r×n/r and stored as SA and SB, respectively. Thus, for thefirst pass through step 1504, the size of SA and SB will bem/r_(max)×n/r_(max). As previously discussed, downsampling is well knownin the art and may be performed by various filters and/or techniquesincluding, but not limited to, bilinear filtering and bicubic filtering.

Proceeding to step 1506, C_(max) is set to an initial value, where:C _(max)=−1

All elements of matrix C_(max) may be set equal to any number or be userdefined. The value of −1 is one value that ensures that for everyc_(max)(s,t), at least one c(s,t) will be greater than c_(max)(s,t)because the minimum of a correlation value is typically 0. In thepresent embodiment illustrated in FIG. 15, C_(max) will be of the samesize as SA and SB for every resolution because, as previously stated,the size of C_(max) is m/r×n/r.

In step 1508, SA and SB are perspective transformed (warped) to theplane 2824 in FIG. 28 and stored in VA and VB, respectively, which canbe visualized as frame captures 2825 and 2826 of the imaginary camera2803 in FIG. 28 (2825 and 2826 are shown as being located behind 2823for the sake of illustration, but spatially, they are coincident with2823). It is understood and well known in the art that the two matricesVA and VB can be stored as one matrix utilizing a 3rd dimension oflength 2 to store both frame buffers or stored in a variety of otherways.

Proceeding to step 1510, a pixel-wise, normalized cross-correlationbetween VA and VB is performed and stored in C. It is understood in theart that substitutable functions may be performed, such as notnormalizing the data before cross-correlation or correlating regionsother than pixels.

In step 1512, every element in C_(max) is compared to its respectiveelement in C, and the corresponding element of Z is compared todetermine if it lies within the range of acceptance. Hence, for every(s,t) in C, C_(max), and Z:If c _(max)(s,t)≤c(s,t) and |z _(est)(s,t)−d|≤roa, then c_(max)(s,t)=c(s,t) and z(s,t)=d

In one embodiment of the invention, the above conditional statement canbe implemented in software through the use of multiple “for” loops forvariables s and t. It will be appreciated by one in the art that theabove conditional statement can be implemented in a variety of otherways. Once the final iteration of step 1512 has been performed for aspecific resolution, matrix Z will be the best estimate of d values foreach pixel corresponding to the depth of each pixel of the objectcaptured away from d_(min).

Once all conditional statements are performed in step 1512, d isincremented in step 1514. Thus,d=d+Δd

As previously discussed, Δd is a user defined value to increment d. Δdcan be visualized as the distance for moving imaginary plane 2824 a Δddistance past the imaginary plane's 2824 previous position.

Proceeding to decision block 1516, the procedure determines if the finalcross-correlation 1510 of VA and VB and comparison step 1512 at aspecific distance d has been performed. The process can be visuallyperceived in FIG. 28 as determining whether the imaginary plane 2824 hasbeen moved far enough to be positioned behind imaginary plane 2828.Mathematically, the process block determines if:d≤d _(max)

If true, then the procedure has not finished all iterations ofcross-correlating VA and VB at a specific resolution. Hence, theprocedure loops back to step 1508. If the above statement is false, thenthe procedure has finished cross-correlating VA and VB at a specificresolution. Therefore, the procedure flows to step 1518.

In step 1518, the sensor resolution divisor r is decreased. In theillustrated embodiment, r is decreased by:

$r = \frac{r}{2}$

Decreasing r leads to cross-correlation being performed at a higherresolution because SA and SB are the downsampling of PA and PB,respectively, by the magnitude of r. Thus, for example, if r is 8, thenr/2 is 4. Hence, the size of SA and SB increases from, for example,80×60 to 160×120 where PA and PB are of size 480×360. Other exemplaryembodiments of decreasing r exist such as, but not limited to, a userdefined array of specific r values or dividing by a different valueother than 2. Dividing by 2 means that the frame captures PA and PB willbe downsampled at a magnitude of factors of two (e.g., 2×, 4×, 8×, . . .).

Once r has been decreased, decision block 1520 is reached. Decisionblock 1520 determines whether r has been decreased to less than 1. Aspreviously discussed, when r equals 1, no downsampling of PA and PBoccurs. Therefore, in the current embodiment, when r is less than 1(e.g., r=0.5), the previous cross-correlations were performed at thehighest resolution (e.g., 640×480 if PA and PB are of size 640×480) andthe attained Z matrix is the desired matrix to help render a 3D surfaceof the object. If r is greater than or equal to 1, thencross-correlation has not yet been performed at the highest resolution.Thus, the decision block determines if:r≥1

If false, the procedure illustrated in FIG. 15 has completed and theflowchart is exited. If the above statement is true, then the procedureflows to step 1522. If, as in one previously discussed embodiment r isdecreased by an array of specific values in step 1518, then one skilledin the art will notice that the logic of decision block 1518 will changeto logic needed to determine if the last value in the array of specificvalues iterated through in block 1518 has been reached during the flowof the flowchart a number of times equal to the number of elements inthe array. One skilled in the art will know how to change the logic ofdecision block 1520 depending on the logic of step 1518.

In step 1522, some of the variables are adjusted beforecross-correlating at a higher resolution. The following variables areset as:

Z = upsampled(Z_(est)) Z_(est) = Z ${\Delta\; d} = \frac{\Delta\; d}{2}$d = d_(min)

Z_(est) is upsampled and stored in Z. In order to determine themagnitude of upsampling, one skilled in the art will notice that thevalue of dividing r in step 1518 is the magnitude of upsampling. In thepresent embodiment, the magnitude of upsampling is 2. For example,Z_(est) (if currently of size 160×120) is upsampled to size 320×240 andstored in Z. The magnitude of upsampling can be determined by dividingthe original value of r in step 1518 by the decreased value of r in step1518. If an array of defined r values is used for step 1518, then themagnitude of upsampling can be determined from the array. As previouslystated, upsampling is well known in the art and can be performed with avariety of filters and/or techniques including, but not limited to,bilinear filtering and bicubic filtering. Once Z has been stored,Z_(est) is set equal to Z (the result of upsampling Z_(est) fordetermining Z).

In addition to setting the values of Z and Z_(est), Δd is decreased. Inthe current embodiment, Δd is divided by 2. Δd is decreased because whencross-correlating at higher resolutions, the increment of increasing dshould be smaller in order to determine better z values for each pixels,t. Visually, at higher resolution, the user will want the imaginaryscreen 2824 in FIG. 28 to move at smaller intervals between d_(min) andd_(max). Δd may be decreased in any manner known in the art, such as,but not limited to, dividing by a different value or using Δd valuesdefined by a user in an array the size of 1 greater than the number ofiterations of step 1522 during flow of the flowchart.

Furthermore, d is reset to equal d_(min). Visually, this can beillustrated, in FIG. 28, as resetting the imaginary plane 2824 to theposition of imaginary plane 2827, which is a d_(min) distance from theimaginary camera 2803 along path 2813.

Proceeding to step 1524, roa is decreased. roa is decreased becauseprior cross-correlation at a lower resolution helps to determine asmaller range of acceptance for z values after cross-correlating at ahigher resolution. In the current embodiment, roa is decreased by thefollowing equation.roa=Δd×10

For the first time performing step 1524, Δd×10 should be less than thedifference between d_(max) and d_(min), which is the value roa wasoriginally set to equal. 10 was found to be a good multiple of Δd forthe current embodiment, but roa can be decreased in a variety of waysincluding, but not limited to, multiplying Δd by a different value than10 and dividing roa by a value.

After decreasing roa, the procedure loops back to step 1504 to performcross-correlation at a higher resolution, wherein the flowchart isfollowed until exiting the procedure at decision block 1520.

FIG. 15 illustrates only one embodiment of the present invention. Itwill be known to someone skilled in the art that not all of the stepsand processes illustrated in FIG. 15 must be followed. Instead, FIG. 15should only be used as a guideline for implementing one embodiment ofthe present invention. Alternate embodiments may comprise, but are notlimited to, using a larger Δd value for incrementing d and thenperforming a curve regression on the correlation values for each pixels,t in order to determine a maxima of the curve and thus extrapolate a zvalue corresponding to the maxima. The above alternate embodiment mayallow for faster processing as less pixel-wise, normalizedcross-correlations need to be performed at each resolution.

Another embodiment of the present invention is illustrated in FIG. 29.FIG. 29 illustrates the imaginary camera as envisioned in FIG. 28 asbeing at the position of one of the cameras 2901 or 2902. In FIG. 29,the imaginary camera can be envisioned as camera 2901. Thus, the framebuffer 2823 visualized in FIG. 28 can be visualized as the sensor 2921of the camera 2901. Hence, in this alternate embodiment, the flowchartof FIG. 15 is changed such that VA=SA in step 1508. Since the framebuffer is from the perspective of camera 2901, the frame capture of 2901does not need to be perspective converted (warped). All other aspects ofthe previously discussed embodiment of the invention are included inthis alternate embodiment.

In a further embodiment of the present invention, more than two camerasare used for cross-correlation. FIG. 30 illustrates frame captures fromthree cameras being cross-correlated. The imaginary camera 2803 asvisualized in FIG. 28 is visualized as one of the cameras 3001, 3002, or3003. In the specific alternate embodiment, the imaginary camera isvisualized as the camera 3003, where frame buffers 3025 and 3026correspond to the warped frame captures of cameras 3001 and 3002,respectively (for the sake of illustration, frame buffers 3025 and 3026are shown as being located behind sensor 3023, but they will be warpedto a position that coincides spatially with sensor 3023). Since multiplepairs of frames are cross-correlated, the flowchart of FIG. 15 isamended for the alternate embodiment such that, in step 1510, matrix Cis the average of the two correlations performed between frame buffers3023 and 3025, and between 3023 and 3026. Thus, matrix C can bemathematically annotated as:

$C = \frac{C_{B} + C_{C}}{2}$

where CB is the pixel-wise, normalized cross-correlation correlationbetween a warped frame 3025 of camera 3001 and a frame 3023 of camera3003 and CC is the pixel-wise, normalized cross-correlation between awarped frame 3026 of camera 3002 and a frame 3023 of camera 3003. Thealternate embodiment may also be expanded to include any number ofcameras over 3, each with their capture frame warped to the position offrame 3023 of camera 3002 and then pixel-wise, normalizedcross-correlated with frame 3023, with all of the correlated resultsaveraged to produce a value of C per pixel. Furthermore, thecross-correlations may be combined by means other than a simple average.In addition, the alternate embodiment may set the frame bufferperspective, as visualized as sensor 2823 in imaginary camera 2803 ofFIG. 28, outside of any of the existing cameras 3001-3003. For example,an imaginary camera could be visualized as existing between cameras 3001and 3002 such that the frame captures of all cameras would need to bewarped to the perspective of the imaginary camera beforecross-correlation. Other embodiments exist of the present invention, andthe scope of the present invention should not be limited to the aboveexamples and illustrations.

FIGS. 16a and 16b and 17 help illustrated visually what the correlationalgorithm is doing. FIGS. 16a and 16b illustrate frame captures 1600 and1610. The frame captures 1600 and 1610 are perspective converted(warped) as an example of step 1508 in FIG. 15 at full resolution (i.e.when r=1). A user would be able to see with the naked eye that regions1602, 1604, and 1606 correspond to regions 1612, 1614, and 1616,respectively. Colors red and green have been used for illustrationpurposes only, as the capture can be performed in any format such as,for example, grayscale.

FIG. 17 is an example of the frames 1600 and 1610 being overlapped asframe 1700, as may be an example of storing VA and VB as one matrix ofarrays in step 1508 of FIG. 15. A user would be able to see with thenaked eye that the depth d is currently set such that region 1704 has ahigher correlation than regions 1702 and 1706 (region 1604 and 1614 arecloser in to each other than are the other region pairs). The coloryellow (red+green) illustrates high correlation between overlappingpixels at a depth d while high concentrations of red and/or green colorillustrates lower correlation between overlapping pixels at a depth d.Color yellow has been used for illustration purposes only.

FIG. 18 is an example of the graph for determining z(s,t) (1803) for aspecific pixel s,t at a specific resolution (identified by window size1801). The range of acceptance (roa) 1804 (which had been determined byprior correlations at lower resolution) limits the values that z canequal so as to remove false peaks 1806 of correlation values fromconsideration in order to determine the correct correlation valuecorresponding to a correct d value for pixel s,t. In the example, mark1807 identifies the z 1803 that corresponds to the true peak 1805. Falsepeaks can result from any number of reasons, including noise in thecaptured signal, random regions with similar patterns, or because thearea being captured is quite oblique to the capturing camera andproduces a distorted image. Thus, the successive reduction ofresolution, illustrated by the process shown in FIG. 15 is veryeffective eliminating false peaks from consideration when determiningthe correct z value in the capture reconstruction. It will be recognizedby those skilled in the art that FIG. 18 is only an illustration of thepixel-wise, normalized cross-correlation and comparison process of steps1510 and 1512 of FIG. 15 and should not be considered as a limitation ofthe determination of values for matrix Z.

The Z matrix output from FIG. 15 can then be rendered into a 3D surface.FIG. 19 is a 2D representation of the 3D surface 1900 created bycorrelating the frames represented in FIGS. 9a and 9b . It should benoted that the “splotchy” or “leathery” appearance of the 3D surface1900 is related to the low resolution of the cameras used to capture theframes of the performer (e.g., 0.3 Megapixels).

The processes just described for determining the surface of a capturedobject can be used for a single frame, or it can be re-appliedsuccessively for multiple frames of an object in motion. In this case,if the reconstructed images such as that of FIG. 19 are played back insuccession, a 3D animation of the captured surface will be seen. In analternative embodiment, the same process is reapplied to successiveframes of an object that is not moving. In that case, the resultingreconstructed z values can be averaged among the frames so as to reducenoise. Alternatively, other weightings than an averaging can be used,including for example, using the z value at each pixel which was derivedwith the highest correlation value amongst all the reconstructed frames.

During motion capture, some regions of a performer may be captured byonly one camera. When the system of one embodiment correlates the regionwith other regions from cameras with overlapping fields of view, thecorrelation determines that the region is distinct (i.e. it does nothave a high correlation with any other captured region) and the systemcan then establish that the region is visible but its position can notbe reconstructed into a 3D surface. FIG. 19 illustrates at 1902 anartifact created on the 3D surface 1900 by having only one cameracapture a region (i.e. this object was captured by 2 cameras, one abovethe head and one below the head; the top of the nose obstructed thecamera above the head from having visibility of the nostrils, so onlythe camera below the head had visibility of the nostrils). In addition,artifacts and errors may occur where the region is at an angle toooblique in relation to the cameras' optical axis (as shown by theartifact 1904, a region oblique to both cameras) or where the pattern isout of view of all cameras in the motion capture system (as shown by theartifact 1906).

For regions that may be out of view of any camera of the motion capturesystem, the random patterns on all surfaces desired to be captured maybe captured and stored by the motion capture system before initiating amotion capture sequence. To capture and store the random pattern, theperformer (with any other objects desired to be captured) stands in sucha way that each region to be captured is visible to at least one camera.The captured patterns are stored in a database in memory (e.g., RAM orhard disk). If the region is only seen by one camera, then the patternstored is the pattern captured by that one camera. If it is seen bymultiple cameras, then the views of the region by each of the multiplecameras is stored as a vector of patterns for that region. In somecases, it is not possible to find one position where the random patternareas on the performer and all other objects to be captured can be seenby at least one camera. In this case, the performer and/or objects arerepositioned and captured through successive frames until all randompattern areas have been captured by at least one camera in at least oneframe. Each individual frame has its captured patterns correlated andstored as described previously in this paragraph, and then correlationsare performed among all of the stored patterns from the various frames.If a region of one frame is found to correlate with the region ofanother, then each frame's images of the region (or one or both frame'smultiple images, if multiple cameras in one or both frames correlate tothe region) is stored as a vector of patterns for that region. If yetadditional frames capture regions which correlate to the said region,then yet more images of that region are added to the vector of images.In the end, what is stored in the database is a single vector for eachrandom pattern area of every surface desired to be captured by thesystem.

Note that the size of the areas analyzed for correlation in the previousparagraph is dependent on the desired resolution of the capture and theachievable resolution of the cameras, given their distance from theobjects to be captured. By moving the cameras closer to the objects tobe captured and by using higher pixel resolution cameras, smaller areascan be captured and correlated. But, higher resolutions will result inhigher computational overhead, so if an application does not require thefull achievable resolution of the system, then lower resolution can beused by simply correlating the captured regions at a lower resolution.Or, to put it another way, random patterns can be correlated whetherthey are correlated at the full resolution of the cameras or at a lowerresolution. In one embodiment of the invention, the desired captureresolution can be specified by the user.

Once the region database has been created as described previously, themotion capture session can begin and the motion of a performance can becaptured. After a sequence of frames of the motion of a performance iscaptured, for each given frame, all of the regions stored in the regiondatabase are correlated against the captured regions. If a given storedregion does not correlate with any of the captured regions (even regionscaptured by only a single camera), then the system will report that thegiven region is out of view of all cameras for that frame.

A 3D modeling/rendering and animation package (such as Maya from AliasSystems Corp. of Toronto, Ontario Canada) can link a texture map orother surface treatments to the output of the motion capture system forrealistic animation. For example, if the character to be rendered fromthe motion capture data has a distinctive mole on her cheek, the texturemap created for that character would have a mole at a particularposition on the cheek. When the first frame is taken from the motioncapture system, the texture map is then fitted to the surface captured.The mole would then end up at some position on the cheek for that framecaptured from the performer, and the motion capture system wouldidentify that position by its correlation to its region database.

The motion capture system of the present invention can correlatesuccessive time interval frame captures to determine movement of theperformer. In one embodiment of the present invention, the distance andorientation between correlated regions of the random pattern captured insuccessive time frames are measured to determine the amount anddirection of movement. To illustrate, FIGS. 26a and 26b are frames 2600,2610 captured by a camera separated by 1/78th of a second in time. Thedata of the frames 2600, 2610 are colored red and green, respectively,for illustrative purposes only. The frame captures can be performed inany color, grayscale or any capture technique known in the art.

In FIG. 27, the frame 2700 is the overlapping of frames 2600 and 2610from FIGS. 26a and 26b , respectively. Uniformly yellow areas of frame2700 are regions of the random pattern that appear in the same positionin both frames 2600 and 2610 (i.e. they do not move in the 1/78th-secondtime interval). Where areas of red and/or green in frame 2700 exist, therandom pattern moved in the time interval between the capture of theframes 2600 and 2610. For example, region 2702 is uniformly yellow andthus represents little or no movement between corresponding spots 2602and 2612. In contrast, region 2704 comprises a pair of red and greenspots corresponding to a green spot 2604 and a red spot 2614, thusrepresenting more movement during the 1/78th-second time interval fromframe 2600 to frame 2610 than that of region 2702. The colors of red,green, and yellow for frame 2700 are for illustrative purposes only.

Thus utilizing the recognition of movement in successive frame captures,in one embodiment of the invention, the 3D modeling/rendering/andanimation package can link the texture map or other surface treatmentsto the recognized directions and distances of movement for regions ofthe random pattern during successive frame captures of the motioncapture system to achieve realistic animation.

Utilizing the previous example of the mole within the 3D texturerendered by the package, in a successive new frame where the area of thecheek with the mole would move, that region of the 3D texture with themole would also move. For example, suppose the mole was located at spot2604 during frame time 2600. The motion capture system would correlatethe region with the region database and would identify that the regionis now at a new position 2614 on the new surface that it outputs for thenew frame 2610. This information would be used by the 3Dmodeling/rendering and animation package, and the package would move themole on the texture map for the cheek to the new position 2614. In thismanner, the texture map would stay locked to the changing surfacefeatures during the performance.

The precise frame-to-frame surface region tracking described in theprevious paragraph would be very difficult to achieve with an arbitraryposition on the performer (e.g. the performer's face) using prior artmotion capture systems. With a retroreflective marker-based system (suchas that used on the face shown in FIGS. 2a and 2b ), the only positionson the performers that can be tracked precisely are those which happento be positions containing a marker. With a line-based system (such asthat shown in FIG. 4), the only positions that can be tracked preciselyare those at the intersections of the lines, and only approximately atpositions on the lines between the intersections. And with a systemusing patterns projected on the face, no positions can be trackedprecisely, unless some markers are applied to the face, and then thetracking is no better than a marker- or line-based system. Thus, thisinvention is a dramatic improvement over prior-art systems in trackingpositions on deformable surfaces (such as a face) while capturing thesurfaces at high resolution.

Although the present invention may be utilized to capture any surface orobject with an applied random pattern, one application for which theinvention is particularly useful is capturing the motion of movingfabric. In one embodiment, a random pattern is applied to a side of thecloth or article of clothing. In another embodiment of the presentinvention, a random pattern is applied to both sides of a cloth orarticle of clothing. In yet another embodiment, each side of the clothis coated with a random pattern of a different color paint (in the caseof phosphorescent paint, a paint that phosphoresces in a differentcolor) in relation to the paint applied to the other side in order tobetter differentiate the two sides.

FIGS. 20a and 20b illustrate captured frames with external visible lightof a cloth with an applied random pattern of phosphorescent paint (thephosphorescent paint as applied is largely transparent in visible light,but where it is especially dense, it can be seen in as a smattering ofyellow on the cloth's blue and lavender paisley print pattern). FIGS.21a and 21b illustrate the captured frames, without external visiblelight, corresponding to the captured frames of FIGS. 20a and 20b ,respectively. FIGS. 21a and 21b are colored red and green, respectively,for descriptive purposes only in the forthcoming description of FIG. 22.For the present invention, the frames may be captured in any color or ingrayscale.

The motion capture system of the present invention handles cloth in thesame way it handles a performer. In one embodiment, prior to a motioncapture session, the cloth with the random pattern applied is unfoldedand held in such a way that each region on both sides of the cloth canbe captured by at least one camera. A region database is then createdfor all regions on both sides of the cloth.

During the capture session, for each frame, the regions that are visibleto at least 2 cameras are correlated and their surface positions areoutput from the motion capture system along with the regions in theregion database that correlate to the regions on the surface, asillustrated in FIG. 15. Therefore, the 3D modeling/rendering andanimation package is able to keep a texture map locked to the surfacethat is output by the motion capture system.

In addition, correlation can be performed on subsequent time framecaptures from the same camera in order to track points on the cloth asthey move. For example, FIG. 22 illustrates the overlapping of FIGS. 21aand 21b , which were captured at different times. Regions 2102 and 2106of FIG. 21a are correlated to regions 2112 and 2116 of FIG. 21b ,respectively, as shown by regions 2202 and 2206/2216, respectively, inFIG. 22. Region 2104 has no mated region in FIG. 21b because the regionis hidden from the camera's view by the fold in the cloth, as shown bycorresponding region 2204 in FIG. 22 in red, for which there is no matedgreen region. For illustrative purposes, the uniformly yellow regions ofthe frame in FIG. 22 correspond to non-moving regions of the frames inFIGS. 21a and 21b and the regions of FIG. 22 that are either a medley ofred/green/yellow or are of a solid red or green color indicate areasthat have moved from the frame captured in FIG. 21a and the framecaptured in FIG. 21b . Thus, movement can be noticed because of theshifting of region 2106/2206 to region 2116/2216 and the disappearanceof region 2104 of the cloth between FIGS. 21a and 21b , leaving only asolid red region 2204.

The cloth capture techniques described herein can also facilitate asimulated cloth animation, which may be created by cloth animationpackages such as those available within Maya from Alias Systems Corp. ofToronto, Ontario Canada. A performer may wear a garment similar to theone being simulated by the cloth animation package. The performer maythen perform movements desired by the animation director while beingcaptured by the motion capture system. The motion capture system of thepresent invention then outputs the cloth surface each frame, aspreviously described, along with a mapping of the position of theregions on the cloth surface (as correlated with the previously capturedregion database of the entire surface of the cloth). The data is thenused by the cloth simulation package to establish constraints on themovement of the cloth.

For example, suppose an animation director has a character in ananimation that is wearing a cloak. The animation director wishes thecloak to billow in the wind with a certain dramatic effect. Prior artcloth simulation packages would require the animation director to tryestablish physical conditions in the simulation (e.g. the speed,direction and turbulence of the wind, the weight and flexibility of thecloth, the mechanical constraints of where the cloth is attached to theperformer's body, the shape and flexibility of any objects the clothcomes into contact with, seams or other stiff elements in the cape,etc.). And, even with very fast computers, a high-resolution clothsimulation could easily take hours, or even days, to complete, beforethe animation director will know whether the resulting billowing cloaklook corresponds to the dramatic effect he or she is trying to achieve.If it doesn't, then it will be a matter of adjusting the physicalconditions of the simulation again, and then waiting for the simulationto complete again. This adds enormous cost to animations involving clothanimation and limits the degree of dramatic expression.

Given the same example as the previous paragraph, but using oneembodiment of the present invention (i.e. applying a random pattern ofpaint to the cloth and capturing it as described previously), if theanimation director desires a character to have a cloak to billow in thewind with a certain dramatic effect, then the animation director justattaches a cloak of the desired weight and flexibility on a performer inthe environment of the scene, and then adjusts a fan blowing on theperformer until the billowing of the cloak achieves the desired dramaticeffect. Then, this billowing cloak is captured using the techniquesprevious described. Now, when the cloth for the cloak is simulated bythe cloth simulation package, the cloth simulation package can beconfigured with only very approximate physical conditions, but to onlyallow the cloak to move within some range of motion (e.g. plus or minus5 pixels in x, y, or z) relative to the motion of the captured cloak.Then, when the cloth animation package simulates the cloak, its motionwill very closely follow the motion of the captured cloak due to theconstrained motion, and the animation director will achieve the desireddramatic effect. Thus, compared to prior art cloth simulationtechniques, the method of the present invention dramatically reduces thetime and effort needed to achieve a desired dramatic effect withsimulated cloth, which allows the director far more creative control. Inone embodiment of the present invention (as illustrated in the precedingexample), the captured cloth surface may be used to establish a generalset of boundaries for the cloth simulation, so that each regionsimulated cloth may not veer further than a certain distance from eachregion of the captured cloth. In another embodiment, the captured clothsurface may be used for rigid parts of a garment (e.g. the rigid partslike the collar or seams), and the simulated cloth may be used for thenon-rigid parts of the garment (e.g., the sleeves). Likewise, anotherembodiment is that the captured cloth surface may be used for thenon-rigid parts of the garment (e.g. the sleeves), and the simulatedcloth may be used for the rigid parts of a garment (e.g., collar,seams).

The present invention is not constrained to capturing or using onlyspecific portions of a captured cloth surface. The captured clothsurface can be used to fully specify the cloth surface for an animation,or it can be used partially to specify the cloth surface, or it can beused as a constraint for a simulation of a cloth surface. The aboveembodiments are only for illustrative purposes.

Camera Positioning for a Motion Capture System

Because motion capture with random patterns allows for higher resolutioncapture, the system may employ camera positioning which is differentfrom existing camera configurations in current motion capture systems.The unique configuration yields motion capture at higher resolution thanmotion capture produced by previously existing camera configurationswith the same type of cameras. Another of the many advantages of theunique camera configuration is that large-scale camera shots can capturerelatively low-resolution background objects and skeletal motion ofperformers and still motion capture at high resolution critical motionsof performers such as faces and hands.

FIG. 23 illustrates one embodiment of the camera positioning for motioncapturing the performer 2302. In the current embodiment, the performeris wearing a crown 2400 with markers attached (e.g., 2406, 2408). FIG.24 shows the markers of the crown 2400 worn by the performer 2302 atvarying heights from one another. For example, marker 2406 is lower thanmarker 2408, which is lower than marker 2410. With varying heightsplaced on the markers, the motion capture system can determine in whichdirection the performer 2302 is orientated. Orientation can also bedetermined by other embodiments of the present invention, such asmarkers placed on the body, or identifiable random patterns applied tocertain regions of the performer 2302.

In FIG. 24, a random pattern is applied to the entire performer 2302,but alternate embodiments have the random pattern applied to a portionof the performer 2302, such as the face. In an additional embodiment,filming without motion capture using the unique camera configurationallows higher resolution capture of portions of a larger shot (e.g.,close up capture of two performers having a dialogue in a larger scene).

In FIG. 23, a ring of cameras (e.g., cameras 2310 and 2312) close to theperformer 2302 is used. In one embodiment of the present invention, thecameras capture the areas of the performer 2302 for which a highresolution is desired. For example, a random pattern applied to the faceof a performer 2302 may be captured at a high resolution because of theclose proximity of the cameras 2310-2312. Any number of cameras cancircle the performer 2302, and the cameras can be positioned anyreasonable distance away from the performer 2302.

FIG. 25 illustrates the performer 2302 encircled by the ring of cameras2310-2312 from FIG. 23. In one embodiment of the present invention,persons control the cameras circling the performer 2302. For example,person 2504 controls camera 2310. Human control of a camera allows theperson to focus on important and/or critical areas of the performer 2302for high resolution motion capture. In alternate embodiments, thecameras may be machine-controlled and/or stabilized.

Referring back to FIG. 23, a second ring of cameras (e.g., cameras2318-2322) encircles the first ring of cameras and the performer 2302.Any number of cameras may form the second ring of cameras 2318-2322. Inone embodiment, the outer ring of cameras capture wide shots including alower resolution capture of the performer 2302 than the cameras2310-2312, which are in closer proximity to the performer 2302.

In order to create a wide shot with a high resolution capture of theperformer 2302, the motion captures of the inner ring of cameras2310-2312 must be integrated into the wide captures of the outer ring ofcameras 2318-2322. In order to integrate the captures, the DataProcessing Unit 610 of the motion capture system must know the cameraposition and orientation for each of the cameras comprising the innerring of cameras 2310-2312. Determining the positioning of the camerascomprising the inner ring may be of more importance and difficulty withthe use of persons 2504 to control the cameras 2310-2312 because ofrandom human movement.

In one embodiment, markers (e.g., 2314 and 2316) are attached to thecameras 2310-2312. The markers 2314-2316 are captured by the outer ringof cameras 2318-2322. The position and orientation of the markers2314-2316 identified in the frame captures of the outer ring of cameras2318-2322 allow the data processing unit to determine the position andorientation of each camera of the inner ring of cameras 2310-2312.Therefore, the Data Processing Unit 610 can correlate the desired framecaptures from an inner ring camera with the frame captures of an outerring camera so as to match the orientation and positioning of the innerring camera's frame captures with the outer ring camera's framecaptures. In this way, a combined capture of both high-resolution andlow-resolution captured data can be achieved in the same motion capturesession.

FIG. 25 illustrates the cameras' field of view (e.g., camera 2310 hasfield of view 2510 and camera 2312 has field of view 2512). When twocameras have overlapping fields of view, 3D rendering can be performedon the streams of frame captures (as previously discussed).

In order to correlate images as described in the process illustrated inFIG. 15, the data processing unit must know the orientations andpositions of the two cameras. For example, the Data Processing Unit 610may have to correct the tilt of a frame because of the personcontrolling the camera holding the camera at a tilted angle incomparison to the other camera. In one embodiment, the position andorientation of the markers attached to the cameras are used by the DataProcessing Unit 610 to calculate corrections to offset the orientationdifferences between the two cameras. The Data Processing Unit 610 canalso correct the difference in distance the two cameras are positionedaway from the performer 2302.

Once corrections are performed by the Data Processing Unit 610, the DataProcessing Unit 610 may correlate the streams of capture data from thetwo cameras in order to render a 3D surface. Correlations can also beperformed on the streams of frame captures from two outer ring cameras2318-2322, and then all correlations can be combined to render a volumefrom the captures. Correlations can then be performed on the sequence ofvolumes to render the motion of a volume.

In an alternative embodiment, the outer ring of cameras 2318-2322 areprior art retroreflective marker-based motion capture cameras and theinner ring of cameras 2310-2312 are random-pattern motion capturecameras of the present invention. In this embodiment, whenphosphorescent random pattern paint is used, the LED rings around themarker-based cameras 2318-2322 (shown as LED rings 130-132 in FIG. 1)are switched on and off synchronously with the light panels (e.g. 608and 609 of FIG. 6) so that the outer ring marker capture occurs when theLED rings 130-132 are on (e.g. during interval 713 of FIG. 7) and theinner ring random pattern capture occurs when the LED rings 130-132 areoff (e.g. during interval 715 of FIG. 7).

In another embodiment, the outer ring of cameras 2318-2322 are prior artmarker-based motion capture cameras and the inner ring of cameras2310-2312 are random-pattern motion capture cameras of the presentinvention, but instead of using retroreflective balls for markers,phosphorescent balls are used for markers. In this embodiment, whenphosphorescent random paint is used, the inner and outer cameras capturetheir frames at the same time (e.g. interval 715 of FIG. 7).

In another embodiment, utilizing either of the capture synchronizationmethods described in the preceding two paragraphs, the outer ring ofcameras 2318-2322 capture lower-resolution marker-based motion (e.g.skeletal motion) and the inner ring of cameras 2310-2312 capturehigh-resolution surface motion (e.g. faces, hands and cloth). In oneembodiment the outer ring of cameras 2318-2322 are in fixed positions(e.g. on tripods) while the inner ring of cameras 2310-2312 are handheldand move to follow the performer. Markers 2314-2316 on the inner ringcameras are tracked by the outer ring cameras 2318-2322 to establishtheir position in the capture volume (x, y, z, yaw, pitch roll). Thispositioning information is then used by the software correlating thedata from the inner ring cameras 2310-2312 using the methods describedabove (e.g. FIG. 15). Also, this positioning information is used toestablish a common coordinate space for the marker-based motion datacaptured by the outer ring cameras 2318-2322 and the random-patternbased motion data captured by the inner ring cameras 2310-2312 so thatthe captured objects can be integrated into the same 3D scene withappropriate relative placement.

In another embodiment, using either outer- and inner-ringsynchronization method, an outer ring of marker-based cameras 2318-2322tracks the crown of markers 2400 and determines the position of themarkers in the capture volume, and an inner ring of random pattern-basedcameras 2310-2310 determines their position relative to one another andto the crown 2400 by tracking the markers on the crown 2400. And in yetanother embodiment, the outer ring of marker-based cameras 2318-2322tracks both the crown of markers 2400 and markers 2314-2316 on the innerring of random pattern-based cameras 2310-2312, and determines theposition of whatever markers are visible, while the inner ring ofcameras 2310-2312 tracks whatever markers on the crown 2400 are visible.Both methods (tracking the crown of markers 2400 and tracking themarkers on the cameras) are used to determine the position of the innercameras 2310-2312 in the capture volume, so that if for a given frameone method fails to determine an inner camera's 2310-1212 position (e.g.if markers are obscured) the other method is used if it is available.

In an alternate embodiment of the camera positioning, each group ofcameras may be placed in an arc, line, or any other geometricconfiguration, and are not limited to circles or circularconfigurations. In addition, more than two groups of cameras may beused. For example, if the application requires it, four rings of camerasmay be configured for the motion capture system.

Hardware and/or Software Implementation of the Present Invention

Embodiments of the invention may include various steps as set forthabove. The steps may be embodied in machine-executable instructionswhich cause a general-purpose or special-purpose processor to performcertain steps. Various elements which are not relevant to the underlyingprinciples of the invention such as computer memory, hard drive, inputdevices, have been left out of the figures to avoid obscuring thepertinent aspects of the invention.

Alternatively, in one embodiment, the various functional modulesillustrated herein and the associated steps may be performed by specifichardware components that contain hardwired logic for performing thesteps, such as an application-specific integrated circuit (“ASIC”) or byany combination of programmed computer components and custom hardwarecomponents.

Elements of the present invention may also be provided as amachine-readable medium for storing the machine-executable instructions.The machine-readable medium may include, but is not limited to, flashmemory, optical disks, CD-ROMs, DVD ROMs, RAMs, EPROMs, EEPROMs,magnetic or optical cards, propagation media or other type ofmachine-readable media suitable for storing electronic instructions. Forexample, the present invention may be downloaded as a computer programwhich may be transferred from a remote computer (e.g., a server) to arequesting computer (e.g., a client) by way of data signals embodied ina carrier wave or other propagation medium via a communication link(e.g., a modem or network connection).

Throughout the foregoing description, for the purposes of explanation,numerous specific details were set forth in order to provide a thoroughunderstanding of the present system and method. It will be apparent,however, to one skilled in the art that the system and method may bepracticed without some of these specific details. Accordingly, the scopeand spirit of the present invention should be judged in terms of theclaims which follow.

What is claimed is:
 1. A machine-implemented method comprising:displaying successive frames of a three-dimensional (3D) facialanimation on a display device wherein at least part of each frame of the3D facial animation is derived from a 3D mesh correlated to a samecontinuous random pattern distribution that is an airbrush spray patternof phosphor-based material that is non-structured and varying spatiallyand varying in amplitude.
 2. The machine-implemented method in claim 1wherein: the continuous random pattern distribution was in the form of amaterial that had been applied to a region on a performer's body.
 3. Themachine-implemented method in claim 2 wherein: the region on aperformer's body is the face.
 4. The machine-implemented method in claim2 wherein: the 3D facial animation utilizes the motion of the performerto change the geometry of a different animated character.
 5. Themachine-implemented method in claim 1 wherein: the 3D facial animationis included in scenes including computer-generated images.
 6. Themachine-implemented method in claim 1 wherein: the motion of thecontinuous random pattern distribution had been captured during a motioncapture session and displayed as a 3D facial animation after processingat a later time.
 7. The machine-implemented method in claim 1 wherein:the display device is a flat panel display or a video projector.
 8. Themachine-implemented method in claim 1 wherein: the continuous randompattern distribution is created by a material that contains phosphor. 9.A machine-implemented method comprising: communicating video framesincluding a 3D facial animation, wherein at least part of each frame ofthe 3D facial animation is derived from a 3D mesh correlated to a samecontinuous random pattern distribution that is an airbrush spray patternof phosphor-based material that is non-structured and varying spatiallyand varying in amplitude.
 10. The machine-implemented method in claim 9wherein: the communication is to a display device such as a personalcomputer, a tablet, a smartphone, a digital television, a videoprojector, a digital movie projector or a computer-driven display. 11.The machine-implemented method in claim 9 wherein: the motion of thecontinuous random pattern distribution had been captured prior tocommunicating the video frames.
 12. The machine-implemented method inclaim 9 wherein: the continuous random pattern distribution is amaterial that contains phosphor.
 13. The machine-implemented method inclaim 9 wherein: the 3D facial animation is part of a displayed scene.14. The machine-implemented method in claim 9 wherein: the communicatedvideo frames include motion data that represents the movement of atleast part of the 3D facial animation.
 15. A system comprising: adisplay device wherein visible features of a 3D animated object aremoved on the display device relative to the motion of a same continuousrandom pattern distribution that is an airbrush spray pattern ofphosphor-based material that is non-structured and varying spatially andvarying in amplitude on the surface of a physical object.
 16. The systemin claim 15 wherein: the physical object is a region on a performer'sbody.
 17. The system in claim 16 wherein: the region on a performer'sbody is the face.
 18. The system in claim 16 wherein: the 3D animationutilizes the motion of the performer to change the geometry of adifferent animated character.
 19. The system in claim 15 wherein: the 3Danimation is included in scenes including computer-generated images. 20.The system in claim 15 wherein: the motion of the continuous randompattern distribution had been captured during a motion capture sessionand displayed as a 3D animation after processing at a later time. 21.The system in claim 15 wherein: the display device is a flat paneldisplay or a video projector.
 22. The machine-implemented method inclaim 15 wherein: the continuous random pattern distribution is createdby a material that contains phosphor.
 23. A system comprising: means forcommunicating video frames including a 3D facial animation; and 3D meshmeans correlated to a same continuous random pattern distribution thatis an airbrush spray pattern of phosphor-based material that isnon-structured and varying spatially and varying in amplitude, whereinat least part of each frame of the 3D facial animation is derived fromthe 3D mesh means.
 24. The system in claim 23 wherein: the means forcommunicating is to a display device such as a personal computer, atablet, a smartphone, a digital television, a video projector, a digitalmovie projector or a computer-driven display.
 25. The system in claim 23wherein motion of the continuous random pattern distribution has beencaptured prior to communicating the video frames.
 26. The system inclaim 23 wherein: the continuous random pattern distribution is of amaterial that contains phosphor.
 27. The system in claim 23 wherein: the3d mesh means is for a 3D facial animation that is part of a displayedscene.
 28. A machine-implemented method comprising: capturing the motionof some or all of a same continuous random pattern distribution by aplurality of cameras from a plurality of different angles the continuousrandom pattern distribution performed with material on specified regionsof a performer's face the performer moving his or her face as a 3Dreference for a computer-generated animated 3D face, and correlatingsuccessive frames of the same continuous random pattern distributionthat is an airbrush spray pattern of phosphor-based material that isnon-structured and varying spatially and varying in amplitude to changethe geometry of successive frames of at least part of acomputer-generated animated 3D face.
 29. The machine-implemented methodas in claim 28 wherein the computer-generated animated 3D face iscreated while the performer is moving his or her face.
 30. Themachine-implemented method as in claim 28 wherein the computer-generatedanimated 3D face is created at a later time than when the performer ismoving his or her face.
 31. A system comprising: a plurality of camerascapturing motion of some or all of a same continuous random patterndistribution from a plurality of angles, the continuous random patternapplied to specified regions of a performer's face, the performer movinghis or her face as a 3D reference for a computer-generated animated 3Dface; and correlating successive frames of the same continuous randompattern distribution that is an airbrush spray pattern of phosphor-basedmaterial that is non-structured and varying spatially and varying inamplitude to change the geometry of successive frames of at last part ofthe computer-generated animated 3D face.
 32. The system as in claim 31wherein the computer-generated animated 3D face is created while theperformer is moving his or her face.
 33. The system as in claim 31wherein the computer-generated animated 3D face is created at a latertime than when the performer is moving his or her face.
 34. Amachine-implemented method comprising: communicating successive framesof a three-dimensional (3D) facial animation, the 3D facial animationchanging across the successive frames; wherein at least part of thechanging in the 3D facial animation are based upon a 3D mesh whosechanges are correlated to changes in a same continuous random patterndistribution that is an airbrush spray pattern of phosphor-basedmaterial that is non-structured and varying spatially and varying inamplitude.
 35. The machine-implemented method in claim 34 wherein: thecontinuous random pattern distribution was captured from a material thathad been applied to a region on a performer's body.
 36. Themachine-implemented method in claim 35 wherein: the region on aperformer's body is the performer's face.
 37. The machine-implementedmethod in claim 35 wherein: the 3D facial animation utilizes the motionof the performer to change the geometry of a different animatedcharacter.
 38. The machine-implemented method in claim 34 wherein: the3D facial animation is included in scenes including computer-generatedimages.
 39. The machine-implemented method in claim 34 wherein: themotion of the continuous random pattern distribution had been capturedduring a motion capture session and displayed as a 3D facial animationafter processing at a later time.
 40. The machine-implemented method inclaim 34 wherein: the successive frames are communicated to a displaydevice.
 41. The machine-implemented method in claim 34 wherein: thecontinuous random pattern distribution is created by a material thatcontains phosphor.
 42. The machine-implemented method in claim 34wherein: the communicated successive frames include motion data thatrepresents the movement of at least part of the 3D facial animation. 43.The machine-implemented method in claim 34 wherein: the communicatedvideo frames include motion data that represents the movement of atleast part of the 3D facial animation.
 44. A system comprising: a memoryto store program code; and a processor to process the program code toperform the operations of: communicating video frames with motion datathat includes a 3D facial animation, wherein at least part of each frameof the 3D facial animation is derived from a 3D mesh correlated to asame continuous random pattern distribution that is an airbrush spraypattern of phosphor-based material that is non-structured and varyingspatially and varying in amplitude to a display device wherein themotion data results in the displayed motion of an animated face suchthat the displayed motion is relative to the motion of a random patternthat had been applied to the surface of a performer's face.
 45. Thesystem in claim 44 wherein: the communication is to a display device issuch as a personal computer, a tablet, a smartphone, a digitaltelevision, a video projector, a digital movie projector or acomputer-driven display.
 46. The system in claim 44 wherein: the motionof the continuous random pattern distribution had been captured prior tocommunicating the video frames with motion data.
 47. The system in claim44 wherein: the continuous random pattern distribution is a materialthat contains phosphor.
 48. The system in claim 44 wherein the 3D facialanimation is part of a displayed scene.